Top 20 Prospects: Cincinnati Reds

1. Billy Hamilton, SS/OF, A- Hamilton has absolutely elite, once-in-a-generation speed and is on pace to shatter every stolen base record in the books. This year he's also showing he can hit some and he doesn't need power because every time he's on first, you know he's running. He's not a great shortstop, but could move to centerfield if necessary. 2. Daniel Corcino, RHP, B+ I really like Corcino and he has been getting Johnny Cueto comparisons for a while. He stuck out more than a hitter an inning at Single A in 2011 and has had some success at AA so far this year. 3. Robert Stephenson, RHP, B A first rounder in 2011, Stephenson's profile is simple: he has frontline starter upside, but there's a long way to go to get there. 4. Tony Cingrani, LHP, B A 3rd round pick out of Rice in 2011, Cingriani backed up an exceptional 2011 with some very good numbers so far this year. He could be a number 2 starter if all goes well and he's definitely one to follow. 5. Tanner Rahier, SS/3B, B A favorite of ours, Rahier goes all out on the field and he makes consistent, hard contact. With some refinement, especially in the field, Rahier profiles as an intriguing all-around shortstop. 6. Kyle Lotzkar, RHP, B Lotzkar has some excellent pure stuff, but like most power arms, he's going to need some refinement to be successful at the next level. There's a lot of upside here. 7. Nick Travieso, RHP, B- The Reds' first rounder in 2012, Trasvieso reaches triple digits with the fastball and has number 2 starter upside if everything works out. That's a big if, however, and he might end up a power arm out of the pen.

8. Jesse Winker, OF, C+ He's not a favorite of ours coming out of the 2012 draft, but he has solid hitting ability for a high school guy and there's some power potential as well. 9. Didi Gregorius, SS, C+ He's a solid all around player and while Gregorious won't be anything special, but he does a lot well on the field. 10. Jeff Gelalich, OF, C+ A 2012 draftee out of UCLA, Gelalich has a chance to be an everyday left fielder, but there's not a huge amount of upside here. If the bat pans out, he'll be a valuable 3rd outfielder. 11. Henry Rodriguez, 3B/2B, C+ Rodriguez can really hit, but he will probably be more of a utility guy as his power will not profile well at 3rd base. 12. Pedro Villareal, RHP, C+ Villareal has the chance to be a solid middle to back end of rotation guy. 13. Dan Langfield, RHP, C+ Langfield could be a nice mid-rotation starter, but he profiles better out of the pen, where his solid present stuff could make him a closer one day. 14. Neftali Soto, 1B, C+ Soto has big time power, but swings and misses will always be a part of his game. A classic, prototypical 1st base prospect. 15. David Vidal, 3B, C+ Questionable approach, but Vidal certainly has power. 16. Tim Crabbe, RHP, C+ Crabbe has good stuff, but there are major control problems. 17. Ryan Wright, 2B, C+ Wright is solid across the board: speed, some gap power and the ability to hit for average.

18. Brodie Greene, 2B, C/C+ Greene has a good approach, gap power and some speed)19. Yorman Rodriguez, OF, C/C+ Tons of tools and upside, but not many baseball skills at this point. 20. Ryan LaMarre, OF, C/C+ Hits the gaps, has speed, will take a walk, but strikeouts are a concern. 21. Juan Perez, SS, C/C+ Very good approach, speed and gap power. Questionable whether he stays at short. 22. Daniel Renken, RHP, C/C+ Good stuff, seems to have solid control. Command worries.

2012 Draft Review: Cincinnati Reds

Overall Draft Grade: B+

The Reds got some good value at the top of the draft and the combination of Travieso, Winker, Gelalich and Rahier has a lot of balance and upside. The three position players in that group all show potential with the bat and could develop into Major League average or better hitters at the next level. Dan Langfield has some good upside for a college righty, especially if he can improve his command, and he and Travieso certainly give this class some power arms. Amaral, Mejias-Brean and Pigott add some nice depth from the college ranks.

1st Round (14): Nick Travieso, RHP, Archbishop McCarthy HS (FL), 6'2", 215Most people predicted Travieso to go anywhere from 10-30 picks later than this, and it looks like the Reds might use this pick to spend some more money in their next few selections. Travieso does have talent, however, and there's some upside in his fastball that has touched the high-90s. His slider shows some potential, but he'll need some work on his command and consistency at the next level. Some see him as a reliever, but the Reds will most likely try him out as a starter, at least initially.

Supplemental Round (49): Jesse Winker, OF, Olympia HS (FL), 6'3", 200, L/LWinker has a good approach at the plate and has shown the ability to consistently barrel the ball up. He doesn't show a lot of present power, but projects some down the road and profiles as left fielder at the next level. His pure hitting skills are what got him taken off the board here, and his bat is very refined for a high school product.

Supplemental Round (57): Jeff Gelalich, OF, UCLA (JR), 6'1", 205, L/RGelalich figured it all out this year at UCLA and put up some impressive numbers against good competition in the Pac 12. His approach at the plate is improving and while neither his pure contact skills or power jump out, he has the potential to be solid-average with the bat at the next level. He's got good speed and uses it on the bases and in the outfield and Gelalich has everyday left field potential.

2nd Round (78): Tanner Rahier, SS, Palm Desert HS (CA), 6'2", 205Rahier goes all-out on the field and already brings some above-average tools to the table. He swings the bat hard and doesn't get cheated at the plate. While he's not the best pure hitter, Rahier shows good bat speed and projects some power down the road. At short, he has a very strong arm and with some refinement of his actions defensively he should stick up the middle at the next level. Rahier is very good value here, as he was almost universally projected in the Top 50 selections.

3rd Round (109): Dan Langfield, RHP, Memphis University (JR), 6'2", 195Langfield is an athletic righty with a smooth delivery and above-average stuff. The ace of the Tigers' staff, Langifeld has a low 90s fastball with some good movement that he can crank even higher at times. He's got a curve that shows good potential as well and has a strong strikeout rate throughout his career at Memphis. He needs to work on his command as he has been "effectively wild" at times, but there's definitely some potential here thanks to Langfield's solidly above-average stuff.

4th Round (142): Jon Moscot, RHP, Pepperdine University (JR), 6'4", 205There's not too much available on Moscot, but he's shown some improvement over his years at Pepperdine and has an ideal pitchers frame. His fastball sits in the low 90s and he complements it with a decent change-up.

5th Round (172): Mason Felt, LHP, Hebron Christian Academy (GA), 6'2", 195Felt is a late riser onto the scene and is mainly a two-pitch guy with a fastball/curveball mix. He may be a bit of an overdraft here, but not too much of one, as he is a projectable lefty that Baseball America had ranked #233 nationally.

Reds Draft Strategy: An Overview

The Reds have had a pretty balanced draft strategy over the past three years. For the most part, they have tended to go for more college guys, but their first few selections seem to be targeting the best player available, regardless of their age. This year the Reds have $6.653 million to spend over their first 12 selections which equates to only a little more than $500,000 per pick. This relatively limited financial pool indicates that they cannot take too many risky selections early.

In our most recent mock draft we had them taking Max Fried, Dylan Baker and Chris Beck, a high schooler, a JUCO player and a 4 year college guy, playing to the fact that they could take one or two high schoolers if they believe they are the best available, but will generally need to balance out the signability of their selections.